During a press conference held yesterday, Minister Mahindanana Aluthgamage told reporters that a suspect was arrested in the case of the attack on Sirasa on January 6th.

The attack happened at 2.15AM on Janauary 6th.
According to Sirasa, the attackers came on a number plate-less white van.

A vigilant civilian had called the 118 emergency number and reported that around 4AM on the same morning several weapons were transferred from a white van to a blackish defender Jeep near the Rajagiriya HSBC bank.

According to information received later, the defender was identified as belonging to one Suraj Anthony Perera residing at No: 84/4, Old Road, Nawala. The actual registration number of the vehicle was 32-6701.

A police team including the Maharagama OIC went to this location and discovered this vehicle, sans number plates, and arrested the suspect.

Intriguingly Mr. Suraj Anthony Perera is a UNP Member of the Kotte Municipal Council.

In another part of this gradually emerging plot designed to discredit the government and take the limelight away from its unprecedented victories in the Sri Lanka’s “war against terror”, it was revealed that a few hours before the attack on the Sirasa premises, a group (apparently linked to the same plotters) had arrived in a Pajero Jeep to the adjoining Devram Vihare Temple and threatened the chief monk.

Minister Mahindanana Aluthgamage further pointed out the obvious question of “why Siras is not revealing the CCTV footage of the attack happening”.

The Sri Lankan people will remember that a few months ago Sirasa fixed video cameras to protect one of their billboards in the Kotte municipality and later broadcasted the billboard vandals saying “Caught Red Handed”.

If Sirasa can protect their billboards with video cameras, why didn’t they use their “extensive state of the art, best in the region, media technologies” to capture the attackers “red handed”? They had ample warning because according to their security guards, a white van had visited them one or two days before the attack and ‘scared them’. So they could have easily installed extra cameras and be prepared to “Catch the Attackers Red Handed”. I do not think it would take 5 million rupees (their current reward for information leading to the attackers) to fix these cameras…

Another question is “Why were the guns of the Sirasa security guards not fired”?
Was it because the attackers were after all, ‘friendly forces”?